You’re a modern woman which means you’re barely surviving. You work yourself to the bone for ever-diminishing returns, thanks to the rising cost of everything from gas to food to health insurance.

Meanwhile, you serve as cook, maid, shrink, tutor, and handyman at home. When life’s little “emergencies” crop up—a broken water heater, a toothache, a parent-teacher conference to discuss your son’s recent homework boycott—well, those land on your plate, too. No wonder you feel you’re one permission slip away from a complete breakdown!

Take a Break

Vickie Milazzo, author of Wicked Success Inside Every Woman, insists that you can lead a successful life and cultivate a wellspring of energy that will renew your mind, body, and soul every day. But, first, you’ve got to find some ways to relieve stress.

“Today’s woman has taken on an extreme life crammed to overflowing with commitments and responsibility,” observes Milazzo. “It’s not possible to stretch yourself to the breaking point every day and not break.

“You wouldn’t expect a battery to keep going forever without recharging it, and you shouldn’t expect it of yourself either,” she adds. “Women need to learn to revitalize their minds, bodies, emotions, and spirits frequently, so that they’ll have abundant energy whenever they need it.”

Listen to Yourself

Milazzo suggests that women try to look objectively at their lives and routines, as though they were happening to a good friend. What advice would you give her?

“You’d probably tell this ‘friend’ to slow down, take a few deep breaths, and spend a few minutes doing something enjoyable before the next day and its demands come crashing in,” Milazzo guesses. “You know that this advice is sound, too, so listen.”

Milazzo speaks from experience. After working for six years as a registered nurse, in 1982 she faced the reality that she was unsatisfied with her career, financially strapped, and burned out across the board.

“I realized that if I wanted to thrive instead of just survive, the first thing I needed to do was cultivate a fulfilling relationship with myself,” she recalls. “Yes, I know that it might seem impossible to take even one moment out of your overscheduled life, but I promise you that it can be done. Too often, our own behaviors and habits sabotage us and prevent us from taking the renewal steps we need for restoration, causing us to slip further and further into the desperate state we’re trying to escape.”

The fact is, every woman needs to renew and refuel her body, feelings, mind, and spirit on a regular basis, so that she can reflect on what’s important and maintain perspective and equilibrium. And with habitual rejuvenation, promises Milazzo, you’ll be able to complete your daily tasks while having the energy to pursue your big goals and passions, and still have some vigor left over for great sex!

Here are 8 of Milazzos tried-and-true ways to relieve stress and energize yourself in the midst of your manic life.